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Wednesday 13th 42F, 6C, heavy overcast and quite windy. Possible showers forecast. Yesterday's fiber Internet problems fixed themselves after numerous changes of power supply from my modest collection of four 12V examples. How does that work? How can the fiber box switch itself off so irritatingly frequently [?] and then completely recover its wits only hours later? I checked with a neighbour and they had no such problems. Electronic paranoia currently [sic] abounds in the Head Gardener's
I walked my usual loop and it was easy to see that all the neatly laid hedging had been removed. A huge stack had accumulated by the road and the forestry machine had gone. A little later I was walking back along the road when I spotted two large birds of prey which were probably Buzzards. As they circled, wings outstretched and fingers pointed, another pair joined them and they continued to circle gently back and forth between our hamlet and the woods. It is still grey overhead but struggling to brighten. A ride will follow coffee and toasted rolls. Hopefully with enough marmalade to kill a horse.
Only a short ride into the wind and back with the wind turbines standing still. Several other large stacks of hedging had accumulated. I hope they don't catch fire! They would make a huge blaze but fortunately this is Denmark and not the UK. A female Kestrel rose and hovered over me as I rode past its field. Am I potential prey now? Two advertised special offer items were not in stock.Did I mention there were council litter pickers beside the road? They were the first I have noticed in quite a number of years. It used to be very commonplace to see them and litter was almost unknown two decades ago. Now it lies every few yards, feet or inches. [In old money] Meters and centimeters, anybody? Since hardly anybody walks the roads any more it can only be drivers responsible for this unsightly mayhem. Logic might have suggested that the litter pickers be sent out prior to the annual, roadside hedge clipping, but no. So the litter gets shredded and scattered along the verge. Making it impossible to pick up with the usual tongs. Only 7 miles.
Thursday 14th 38F, 3C, calm and bright but with a milky sky. Light winds should be a reasonable excuse for a ride, but where?
Denmark has been trialing the idea of cyclists being able to turn right while traffic lights are at red. [The equivalent of turning left in the UK, Japan, India, Australia, New Zealand and parts of South Africa, amongst others.] Only carefully selected light-controlled crossings have been approved so far to check for accident rates and conflicts. Presumably there would have to be safe cycle lanes on their exits to avoid faster moving cars on the cross road running straight into the emerging cyclists.
Following positive trial results, the government is now asking communes [councils] to check which of their crossings would be suitable for an expansion of the idea across the country. Cars and other vehicles will continue to obey the lights. Hopefully cyclists will soon be be able to escape before lorries and buses turn across their path. No doubt many crossings had a build-up of cyclists waiting at red. Making them rather vulnerable to being rolled over by the back wheels of long vehicles with blind spots. It should be emphasized that not all crossings are affected and the suggestion for such a change has not yet been passed into law.
The arrows shows the chimney of a house immediately behind the stacked hedging to give a better sense of scale.
It is very commonplace in Denmark to see cyclists completely ignoring red lights when turning right. Which must increase frustration amongst drivers obeying the lights. It also causes irritation amongst other cyclists as the law-breaking cyclist often swings right without signalling. Or showing any other sign of intelligent life.
In countryside news: There is a call for farmers to clear their fields of deer and hare young before harvesting. The animals lie concealed in the tall crops and are then run over by the large harvesting and bailing machines. Some farmers employ local hunters to clear their fields using dogs. They also start harvesting in the middle of the field and work outwards to give the young animals a better chance to flee. This is not a completely one-sided, animal welfare problem. The greater the number of surviving animals the better for the hunters, of course. The farmer can, no doubt, charge more for a well stocked hunting area. There is also the serious matter of animal carcasses rotting in the harvested and plastic wrapped bales. This can cause botulism to animals fed on the 'contaminated' hay.
Click on any image for an enlargement.
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